Roland Boer 
Rescuing the Bible 

What is the future for the Bible, one of the most important books
in the world? In this manifesto, Roland Boer explores the idea that
the Bible is an unruly and uncontrollable text that has been
colonized by church, synagogue, and state.

* * Powerfully argues that the Bible needs to be rescued from its
abuse by the religious and political right

* Considers the history of revolutionary readings of the Bible,
from Gerrard Winstanley to the present

* Urges a role for the Bible in a new ‘worldly left’: an alliance
between the religious and secular left that can promote more
progressive readings of the text

* Concludes by offering a ‘political myth’ from the Bible that
condemns oppression, imagines a better society and celebrates the
biblical themes of opposition and chaos.

Table of Content

Preface.

Introduction.

1. The New Secularism.

2. The Worldly Left: Towards a Politics of Alliance.

3. Bad Conscience: Battles Over the Bible.

4. (Ab)using the Text: Conflicts in Politics and Science.

5. Making All Things New: The Revolutionary Legacy of the
Bible.

6. Rescuing the Bible.

Conclusion.

Notes.

References.

Index of Subjects.

Index of Biblical References

About the author

Roland Boer is Reader in the Centre for Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies at Monash University in Australia. He has written seven books on biblical, political and philosophical subjects.